Three weeks in focus

The acquisition of Forte Software by Sun Microsystems and the continuing multiple acquisitions being made by Cisco dominated the international IT world during the last three weeks. At home, the flood of both interim and full-year results and the resignation of Piet den Boer stole local headlines.

• we saw excellent full-year results from Aplitec, Computer Configuration Holdings, CS Computer Services Holdings (maiden numbers), Enterprise Outsourcing Holdings (maiden results) and Rectron (maiden results);
• good full-year numbers from Bryant Technology, Compu-Clearing (income above forecast and revenue slightly below forecast), Digicore (income up slightly on forecast but revenue well down on forecast), Dimension Data`s Asian subsidiary Datacraft, Educor, Grintek, Mustek, Siltek (net income well down) and Smacsoft (income and revenue both above forecast);
• mediocre full-year figures from Primedia and Paragon;
• very poor year-end results from Seartec, and the news that staff numbers are to be trimmed;
• excellent interim numbers from Advtech Group and Union Alliance Media Group;
• good interim (maiden) figures from ShawCell Telecomms;
• satisfactory (maiden) interim figures from Control Instruments and SecureData;
• mediocre interims from Hix;
• an interim (nine months) loss from Metropolis; and
• the successful listing of Omega Alpha International Information Technologies in the IT sector of the JSE.

[Local]

Local acquisitions, mergers, investments etc (see attachment).

Local Cautionary Notices (see attachment).

Local Listing calendar (see attachment).

Other local news included:

• Integrated Health Technologies moved to the IT sector of the JSE under its new name, Integrated Technology Holdings;
• CSH Holdings moved to the main IT sector of the JSE under the name CS Holdings;
• Brainware chairman Piet den Boer`s resignation (but this was expected!);
• the appointment of Louis Barclay, the ex-acting CEO of Ariel Technologies, as the COO for Computer Configurations;
• the announcement of a new Dimension Data company, Advanced Infrastructure Management;
• a joint venture between Datatec and Siltek for the renting out of IT equipment;
• the restructuring of the Laser Group (involving MGX);
• the name change of Scantec, a member of the Datatec Group, to Logical, and of Triple-S to SVI Retail SA; and
• Altech`s withdrawal from its very protracted and problematical bid for Reunert.

At home, the flood of both interim and full-year results and the resignation of Piet den Boer stole local headlines.

Additionally, It seems we have yet another exhibition planned for SA, with COMDEX South Africa now scheduled for October 2000. It is my view, and I know it is one shared by many others, that SA already has too many exhibitions and conferences, and this just exacerbates the situation. It appears that we do not pay cognisance to recent trends in the US and Europe on these matters.

• we saw the roll-out of the new Siemens/Fujitsu joint venture, Fujitsu Siemens Computers BV, which will start trading on 1 October; and
• IBM`s announcement that it will exit the network hardware business, with Cisco picking up some patents and intellectual property rights.

[International]

International acquisitions, mergers, joint ventures etc (see attachment).

Other international news included:

• the surprise resignation of Rick Belluzzo, the CEO of SGI, who moves to a senior position at Microsoft and is replaced by Robert Bishop, an internal appointment;
• Intergraph`s withdrawal from the PC desktop and server business, together with some 200 lay-offs;
• the appointment of Thomas J Bresnan as the new CEO at New Horizons Worldwide; and
• the resignation of Rogue Wave Software`s CEO, Michael Scally.

We saw excellent figures from 4-Front Technologies, Acer, Applied Materials, Card Capture Services, Dell, Network Appliance, Tria Software AG and Great Wall Technology.

Losses came from 3dfx, Aegis Comms, Agile Software, Altris Software, AM Comms, Ansoft, Aquis Comms, BEA Systems, CHS Electronics, Continuous Software, CompUSA, CoreComm, Coyote Network Systems, Cybernet Internet Services, DataDesign AG, Descartes Systems Group, e-Net, eGlobe E-Sync Networks, Ecorp (full-year), Euroweb, FiNet.com, FlexiInternational Software, Frontline Comms, GraphOn, Hummingbird Comms, Image Systems, Intelect Comms, Intentia, Internet Gold, JD Edwards, KMC Telecom, LanVision Systems, Lycos, MB Software AG, MC Infomatics, Merant, MGI Software, Muse Technologies, Netia Holdings, Nestor, Network Systems International, Ortel, Plaintree Systems, Prodacta AG, QAD, REMEC, Robocom, Ross Systems, SofTech, SSA (worse than expected), Star Technologies, Supercom, ThrustMaster, Unitrode, VSI Holdings, Wall Data and Zenith Electronics.

Good numbers were recorded by Analog Devices, Computacentre, Hewlett-Packard, Intermost, Merkantildata ASA, Novell, NTL, Sema Group, Serena Software, Sitek, Smallworldwide, Unify, Utimaco and WM-data Nordic. Satisfactory figures were reported by Puma Technology (back in the black), Systar, Tech Data, Telebyte (back in the black), Teltrend and Wave Technologies (back in the black).

Mediocre returns came from ADC Telecomms, American Software (back in the black), MCT (back in the black), Merant, NeoMagic, Software Spectrum, Swisscom, TransNet, Volt Information Sciences and Wind River Systems; while very poor results came from Autodesk and Peerless Systems.

Other financial news included profit warnings from Intergraph (lay-off charges), Quantum (charge for 800 job cuts) and Sterling Software (acquisition costs). There was also share split announcements from Applied Micro Circuits and Network Solutions; news that PairGain has been found guilty of accounting charges; and news from CompUSA that it will cut its sales organisation in half, shedding some 1 800 staff.

Locally

Billcad (-33.3%)
Brainware (-25.8%)
Casey (-23.8%)
Computer Configurations (+30.5%)
Connection Group (-28%)
Cyberhost (-46.4%)
I-Solutions (+60.7%)
Infowave (-24%)
M-Web (-23.2%)
Metropolis (-42.1%)
Micrologix (-22.3%)
Pinnacle (-26.7%)
SecureData (-22.4%)
Skills Accel (-34.3%)
USKO (+36.4%)
Zaptronix (-48.1%)

Internationally

Applix (+69.3%)
CHS Electronics (-41.9%)
Clarify (+27.8%)
Forte Software (+78.4%)
Maxtor (+45.3%)
Olicom (+40.9%)
Printronix (+31.5%)
Redback Networks (+98.2%)
Read-Rite (+54.3%)
Security First Technologies (+48.3%)
Sema Group (+32%)
SSA (-55.2%)
Staffware (+25.7%)
Symix (-26.1%)
Unigraphics Solutions (+28.1%)
Veritas (+25%)
Western Digital (+60%)

In the last week of August, Cambridge in the UK hosted the African Computing & Telecommunications Summit, organised by AITEC and attended by some 200 delegates from over 30 countries, not only from across the African continent but from interested parties in both Europe and the US. From a local perspective, the most senior South African Government representative was Andile Ngcaba, the director-general of Communications, who presented one of the keynote addresses.

The one consistent message from the conference was the recommendation to de-regulate and liberalise the various African telecommunications authorities as quickly as possible. This was seen as one of the main ways to unlock and accelerate the development of the inherent potential that exists within the continent. I will provide more extracts from the conference next week.